"To be honest with you, I like Gene," the Motley Crue/Sixx: A.M. bassist said, during his 'Sixx Sense' radio show, "but in this situation, I don’t like Gene. I don’t like Gene’s words, because ... there is a 20-year-old kid out there who is a Kiss fan and reads this and goes, ‘You know what? He’s right. I should just kill myself.’”

Sixx, a recovering addict, says those suffering should instead try to see the bigger picture. “For people who are depressed, there is a way out," he adds. "There are many, many ways out. And I don’t want people to listen to an interview from a rock star, who’s telling you the only way out is out, when I’m telling you -- and I wrote it in ‘The Heroin Diaries’ -- you can get out of this. One in 10 Americans are affected by depression at one point in their life, so this is another thing to think about. At one point in your life, meaning it will come and it will go … they say all bad things must pass, all bad things will pass, so keep that in the back of your mind if you’re feeling depression, and don’t listen to people who don’t know what they’re talking about.”

Simmons' initial comments came after a question from SongFacts about his relationship with the departed original members of Kiss. “I don’t get along with anybody who’s a drug addict and has a dark cloud over the head and sees themselves as a victim," he began, before digressing into thoughts on those with depression. “For a putz 20-year-old kid to say, ‘I’m depressed. I live in Seattle.’ F– you, then kill yourself."

Sixx and Simmons are both on tour with their respective bands. Sixx: A.M. is also set to release a new EP called 'Modern Vintage,' with the song 'Gotta Get It Right' serving as an advance single.